Finish Lines

Through out this semester I realized that as we grow up finish lines seem easier and more probable. For instance, before college I probably wouldn't have ever stayed up super late finishing a paper or studying for an exam, just to make sure. Class just simply wasn't worth that effort. Now however, I do what it takes to make sure I have done my best on assignments. The best part about that is that it is lots easier than I expected it to be to stay up until the job is done. I think it's easier because now I care, I'm taking classes I care about and I am in a major that I love. The finish line seems much more in sight this semester than it did during highschool.

Homemade food

Going home over Thanksgiving break made me realize just how much I missed homemade food. My mom is the queen of homemade food. She makes almost all herself. Often times she even uses ingredients that she grew herself. For example, salsa comes from the tomatoes she grew, apricot wraps come from the apricots on our tree and jams come from the berries in our gardens. Some of my favorite items that she makes (from scratch) include:

~donuts
~pizza (including the dough)
~wheat bread (she even grinds the wheat into flour)
~noodles for chicken noodle soup or lasagna
~tortillas (which are so good they ruin your opinion of store-bought FOREVER)
~mashed potatoes (the potatoes are even from our garden)
~grape juice

I have been super spoiled. I didn't realize how spoiled until I came to college and am now constantly forced to eat things store-bought or fast-food. Neither of which is appealing anymore. I loved going home this weekend and being able to eat REAL, GOOD food everyday for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

51 things I'm thankful this week

I'm Thankful For:

1. Snow in the winter
2. People who don't rake their leaves so I can walk in them
3. A really warm electric blanket
4. A shower at my real home whose head is high enough up it doesn't hit me in the head
5. Warm Fuzzy socks
6. Thanksgiving break so my mind doesn't explode from so much school
7. family on my mom and dad's side that get along
8. Christmas trees
9. Nice, fluffy couches
10. DVD players
11. A boy who brings me roses for no reason
12. Hills so I can go sledding
13. boats so I can go water skiing
14. rocking chairs, so I can be comfortable
15. babies who actually want to be held by someone other than their mom
16. the sound of laughter
17. really good roommates
18. dishwashes
19. homemade giftts
20. clean houses
21. really cute dresses
22. people who say hi when they pass you
23. fellow co-workers who like to talk to you
24. customers that are nice and friendly
25. homemade pizza
26. smell of homemade bread on a cold day
27. the smell of rain in the forest
28. long walks
29. the sound of a bird after a long winter
30. really pretty sunsets
31. a dark blue, really pretty night sky where the stars just glisten
32. snowfall on Christmas day
33. dark, gray, rainy days
34. clean water
35. people who love me
36. carrot cake
37. really thick, creamy icing on cake (or divinity icing)
38. microwaves that aren't so hot they spit food at you
39. homes that are heated
40. neosporin so I don't scars from really hot microwaves that spit food
41. cars instead of walking
42. people that are easy to talk to
43. people that are easy to get along with
44. thoughtful acts of kindness
45. having homework done so I don't have to stay up until 2:00 everyday and I can play instead during break
46. long walks
47. really pretty Christmas trees
48. sparkly pink shoes
49. running into old friends
50. going home for the holidays
51. the ability to speak and express gratitude

Stress Factor

I have now decided there is never a stress free time in a college student's life. There is always something to worry about. What homework do I have this week? What classes do I need to take this semester? Who are the good teachers? What's my major? What if I don't get into my major? Where should I do my internship? What if I never get into my internship? And so the list goes on and on. The problem with stress is that it often influences how we eat. When we are under lots of pressure to get things done our healthy eating slowly goes out the window. We begin eating late at night either because we forgot to eat or we have now been awake so many hours we're hungry. When it's late no one likes to wash some carrots so foods usually range from candy bars, soda, popcorn and chips. During the day we often resort to fast food on our way from class to class because we were up way to late the night before to make a salad, or there just isn't time to make my food and eat it AND clean it up. Although Stress can often keep us motivated and working hard it certainly takes a toll on our health.

Revision

As Saturday night rolled around I knew it was inevitable. I was sick and there was no going around it. My body ached so bad I could fill it in my bones, my throat was burning and my ears were ringing. I panicked I knew I only had a few days before I had to get better. I had school on Monday, tests all week and many other small assignments. By Sunday morning I realized I needed a new approach or a "revision" in my plan to get better. My everday granola for breakfast with salad for lunch and dinner approach wasn't going to cut it any longer. The granola was scratchy on my aching throat. The salad was cold and slimy. I had to revise. I quickly changed my everyday meal plan to orange juice, grape juice, hot cocoa, medication, hot soup, hot lemonade, and any other hot and spicy food that came my way. Instead of jumping up early on Sunday and getting ready for the day I slept in. Instead of reading and planning my schedule for the next week, I slept in. I pretty much slept all day and all night again. On Monday my plan pretty much went the same as Sunday's: lots of sleep and lots of hot, spicy food. Now finally Monday night I feel more like me again. Thanks to my quick "revision" of my meal plans and schedule plans for the week end!

Style

My style is pretty difficult to describe because it's constantly changing. I'd say my most frequent style is super casual. I believe this not only about the way I dress, but also about my writing. If I can get away with t-shirt and jeans, or even better; a sweater and sweat pants I'm all over the idea. In my writing I abbreviate words, my diction is simple and my tone is casual, just like how I'd prefer to dress. I think this is because most of the writing I do is in letters, e-mails or my journal. However, there are times when I love to get dressed up. Big dances, weddings and special events are perfect excuses for me to spend a ton of time getting ready and loving it. This is true of my writing as well. There are times when I can't resist being formal. I love using big words and putting a lot of time and effort into my writing. Most often the formal side of my writing comes out when I write poetry or when I write academic papers. I love making sure that all my words rhyme perfectly when I write poetry. I could waste tons of time going word by word, over and over my poetry. Don't be disallusioned into thinking I could spend lots of time writing formally though. It takes a lot of work and time and it always scares me. I have to balance my formal writing with my informal writing in order for it to be effective.

Halloween Traditions

All things considered, halloween probably was the best choice of a holiday to kick off the holiday season. Full of laughter, fun and food halloween offers a perfect beginning to the holidays. You spend the whole day looking at other's costumes, thinking that you'll HAVE to remember so and so's costume for next year. The night is spent showering little kids with praises at their pretty, creative, etc. costumes. Although my favorite holiday is definitely not halloween, I still look forward to it every October because of our my mom's creativeness. Every halloween my mom makes homemade, personal-sized, pizza's. Each member of our family gets to choose from the variety of toppings and make their very own pizza. After all of the pizza's are made we watch "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" as we answer the door to the little tricker treaters. Then the best part of the whole night comes. My mom makes homemade donuts. It takes so long to make them, that by the time their done no one can resist fighting to get the first one. She makes the donuts perfectly. They are fluffy and moist AND glazed. These are the only donuts I'll eat, because of there "melt-in-you-mouth" perfectness. The pizza and donuts make halloween one of the tastier holidays.